World

Pop-Up Gay Bar Takes Over Putin's Land

Last weekend, Far & Son, a Swedish rap duo, known for creating chaos and comedy, constructed a quick-and-dirty gay bar to protest Russia’s anti-gay laws. Where you might ask? On land owned by none other than president Vladimir Putin himself.

The “Blue Oyster” bar is a comfortably situated wooden shack on Åland archipelago, a remote clump of islands between Finland and Sweden. Imagine the scene: island shack, blue letters splayed across rotting wood, twinkling lights, young lust in the air, the possibility of sex on Putin’s very land. Sounds like a hell of a dream.

Putin doesn’t think so; he likes his propaganda law. Article 6.21, also known as the Propaganda of Nontraditional Sexual Relations Against Minors law, is quite ambiguous. But ultimately it allows the Russian government to fine, detain, or, in the case of aliens in Russia, deport individuals participating in this propaganda from the country. So you choose: serve up to 15 days in jail, pay 100,000 rubles, or go home.

It is unknown if the Blue Oyster is still firmly standing or if the dirty, dirty bar is no more. Even if it is gone, don’t sweat it. Images are on the Internet, social media has been sparked, and Far & Son are definitely not done with their activist mischief.

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